Upside Down
by sleepingdreams
Summary: Brooke's life is turned upside down thanks to Victoria and a surprising other character. How will she react? Will she leave Tree Hill for good? How will Sam be affected? Rated M for language and abuse


**Chapter 1:**

Brooke jolted up in her bed, frightened by the petrified scream of her foster daughter. Running to Sam's bedroom door, she froze—shocked by the sight of her usually strong-willed, independent teenager rocking back and forth in her bed with tear stained cheeks. Perched on the edge of the bed, Brooke held her daughter, soothing Sam to the best of her ability, whispering sweet words in her ear.

"Baby, what's wrong?" Brooke questioned as Sam's tears finally subsided. "Talk to me." Sam said nothing as Brooke calmly rubbed her back waiting for an explanation of any sorts. "I didn't mean to wake you up… I'm sorry," Sam, mumbled, her voice trailing off into the darkness of the room. Brooke lifted Sam's chin so their eyes met and said, "I'm always here for you, no matter what. It comes with a mother's love. Now, why are you so scared? You don't have to tell me if you're not ready, but know I'll be here when you're ready to talk."

7 am came around and brought the routine of breakfast. Brooke had been up for hours, not being able to fall asleep after Sam's minor meltdown. She was slumped over the counter nursing her 3rd cup of coffee when Sam came out of her room looking surprisingly awake and ready to go. "Morning." "At least you didn't add the good," Brooke said under her breath. Today was going to be a long day; Brooke still wasn't ready for work and had a migraine that nearly prevented her from taking the 10 steps to get to her closet. By the time Haley knocked on the door to take Sam to school, Brooke had almost fallen asleep on the counter. Seeing her best friend in an unusual circumstance, Haley asked Sam to wait in the car, so she could cater to Brooke.

Lightly shaking her, Haley tried to wake Brooke from her much needed slumber. "Brooke, hun, you need to get up. You've got a meeting with Jullian about the costumes in 45 minutes. You seem out of sorts. Is everything okay?" Groaning, Brooke slowly removed herself from her perching spot and dragged herself to her closet. Worried, Haley followed close behind. Brooke muttered a simple "I'm fine" and started digging through her closet for something decent to wear. "Alright," Haley said, completely unconvinced. "You know where to find me if you need me. I'll drop Sam off after school."

Walking to the car, Haley was completely unconvinced that something wasn't wrong with her best friend. She was determined to find out what it was because Brooke Davis never acted like this—lacking energy, enthusiasm, and attitude.

"So Sam, what's up with your mom? Anything out of the ordinary happen?"

"Wow. Way to be subtle, but no, not that I know of. She hasn't been sleeping a lot though; maybe that's it," Sam answered, avoiding the topics of her nightmares completely.

Feeling the need to warn Jullian, Haley dialed his number while pulling up in front of the school. Before she could get a word out, Jullian picked up and informed her of Victoria's presence in the Clothes Over Bros boutique. "Shit, Jullian, get her out of there. Brooke is on her way and she's not having the best of days. I don't know why just yet, but if Victoria's there it's going to be 100 times worse."

In downtown Tree Hill, Brooke pulled up to the boutique and felt a sense of dread wash over. Through the glass windows, she could see Jullian fighting the devil. "Victoria! Why are you here? What have you come to take from me now? I'm done with you, so you have no business here. Get out," Brooke screamed at the top of her lungs while walking into her store.

"Well aren't you just a ray of sunshine this morning?"

"What the hell do you want?"

"Sam. Her birth mother wants to meet her, and I'm just here to coordinate."

"Let me tell you something. Don't go near my daughter. Is that understood? Now get the fuck out of my store and out of Tree Hill."

"Hmm. Nice to see you haven't lost your immature ways. I'll be back and by then I hope you will have grown up and accepted that Sam is not your daughter and not your responsibility."

As Victoria left, Brooke stood there with shock, anger, and resentment written all over her face. "I have to go. I can't be here." Brooke said and suddenly walked from the store, going the opposite direction of her mother.

"We have a problem." Jullian began as he conferenced Haley and Peyton. Explaining the whole story, he began to walk after her, trying to find his girlfriend. Shocked as well, Haley and Peyton didn't know what to say or where to begin. Being pregnant, Peyton could only wait while Haley was about to start 3rd period English class.

Sam was the first in class, which was unusual for her. She walked in 5 minutes early knowing Haley had a free period before hand. She was unnoticed as she arrived in the room and heard the discussion about Brooke.

"Haley, what's going on? Where's Brooke? What's wrong?" Haley didn't know how to answer, and the silence became filled with tension.

Finally Haley broke the silence; "There's nothing you can do right now. I'll tell you on the way home." So Sam sat, anxious and worried, for the next 5 periods, moving from class to class concentrating only on Brooke. She prayed it wasn't her fault—an effect of waking Brooke up in the early hours of the morning the previous night before.

At 4:00, there was still no news of Brooke's location, but Victoria had returned to the store on more than one occasion. Peyton sat nervously playing her records over and over again waiting for any news. While Sam and Haley sat in Brooke's living room and waited. Jullian was still wandering around Tree Hill looking in vain for Brooke. She obviously didn't want to be found.

**Chapter 2:**

Her head was spinning. Brooke couldn't wrap her mind around the information about Sam's birth mother and the idea that she might be losing Sam. She walked until she didn't know where she was, confused by her surroundings. She could hear Victoria's voice playing over and over again in her head, and all she could think of was losing the one thing that mattered most in her life. She laughed slightly at the irony of the daughter she found in the shoplifter. Despite everything, to Brooke, Sam was her daughter, her family, and she would do anything to keep that girl safe. Her birth mother had given her up once; what was to say that it wouldn't happen again? On that note, what was to say that Victoria was telling the truth?

She looked in front of her and then behind her. She was lost and needed her daughter. Brooke turned around and starting walking in the direction from which she came.

**Chapter 3: **

Finally back in an area she knew, Brooke contemplated what she was going to tell Sam about the day, about why she disappeared. How would she explain it to Haley or Peyton? Jullian would understand she thought. He was there when Victoria uttered the words that subsequently turned her world upside down.

As she walked down her street, she still had no idea how she was going to walk in her house. "Maybe," she thought to herself, "no one will be here and I can just walk to my room and forget this day happened. Everything will be back to normal."

No such luck. As she walked through the front door, Sam stopped her pacing and ran straight for Brooke and the safety of her embrace. A sigh of relief echoed around the room as the two hugged. Brooke felt horrible after seeing the look of fear in Sam's eyes. She brought so much stress to her friends and daughter. She hoped they would understand.

After the small reunion was over, Sam was livid, questioning her mother, unable to understand what would drive Brooke to disappear for hours at a time. Brooke knew Sam would be angry, but it never crossed her mind that Sam would think she would be leaving forever. The guilt Brooke felt tripled as Haley tried to calm the obviously stressed teen.

The story of the daily events was explained. Sam was still upset, but Peyton and Haley understood. Jullian had a look of dread on his face as he asked if he and Brooke could speak alone. On the deck, Jullian took Brooke's hands in his and kissed her gently. "I need to tell you something." After a long pause, he continued. "I leave tomorrow for Los Angeles. I've taken on a movie that will be filming in LA, New York, and Italy. I could be gone for the better part of two years."

"What? You're leaving? What about Luke's movie? What about us?" Questions raced through Brooke's mind as she decided this day could possibly not get any worse.

"I want you to come with me. I love you, Brooke Davis. I can't live without you but this is a great opportunity. There may not be another one like it."

"Come with you? To LA and New York and Italy? Jullian I can't uproot our lives to travel with you. I have Sam to think about and she is my priority. Moving around like that wouldn't be good for her; she needs stability."

"She would have stability. Victoria was saying…"

"No. You didn't talk to Victoria. You aren't taking her side. You can't. You know how important Sam is to me. I can't lose her. I just got her." Astonishment turned to rage. "Wait. You were in on this? You knew all along. How dare you. You will not take my daughter from me. Do you hear me? You can let yourself out. Goodbye Jullian." At this point, she was screaming; the four people in the living room turned to look out the sliding glass door. None of them could believe what they were hearing.

Quickly Jullian walked into the room and out the front door in the same stride. Within moments, Brooke ran through the house and slammed her bedroom door shut, sliding down the wall, burying her face in her hands. Her sobbing was heard in the living room, and no one was sure how to react. Peyton moved first. "I'm going to find Jullian. I have a few things to say to him. Are you okay Sam?" Peyton asked before starting her search for her ex-boyfriend. Sam was silent. The woman she'd come to love as her mother was breaking down in the next room; her birth mother wanted to take her back. She walked to the porch without saying a word.

"Brooke. Can you let me in?" Haley asked through the door of Brooke's room. "I know you're not okay. Please talk to me. I'm worried about you." Haley glanced back at Lucas, whose face showed everything from relief to sadness to anger. "Come on babe. It's going to be okay." Slowly, Haley opened the door. Brooke was sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall. Her body shook heavily with her sobs as her face was buried in her hands. Haley sank down the wall next to Brooke and wrapped her arms around the petite brunette's shoulders.

"What am I going to do? How is it possible for a life to fall apart with 3 sentences? I can't lose my daughter, Haley. I can't. It will break me."

"I know, love. You won't lose her. We'll take care of this. It will all be okay. Just breathe okay? Take things one step at a time."

Sam stood listening at the door, having come in from the patio. She stood silent and finally asked, "Mom, are you okay?"

Sam was truly worried. She was used to the Brooke that everyone leaned on, the Brooke that was brave, consistent, and never faltering. Sam was used to the woman who was strong enough to battle an angry foster child and change her for the better. She couldn't stand to see her mom like this; she didn't know how to react. Through her years in foster care, Sam had built up a defense that protected her from getting attached to placement homes. Brooke's house was the first home where she felt like she belonged, where she felt like she had a family, someone to care for her.

Sam took hold of Brooke's hand while Brooke cried into Haley's shoulder. The bad day was just starting.

**Chapter 4**:

"How fucking dare you. First of all, you decided to tell her today, which makes you not only an idiot but also a jerk. You knew she was having a bad day. She doesn't just disappear because she thinks it's fun. Obviously she had some issues to work out for herself. Then you had to go and fuck it all up with your idea to take her around the world WITHOUT HER DAUGHTER. I don't think you understand what you've done. She trusted you. She loved you, and you went behind her back. You talked to Victoria. You knew. How could you do that to Brooke? She loves Sam like her own daughter. The two of them made a family. You couldn't stand to see anyone else have Brooke but you. You ruined it. Do you understand how long it's been since Brooke opened her heart to anyone? And she did for you. I warned her that you were bad, but somehow you convinced me that you changed. But you know what? You are worse than ever you selfish son of a bitch. Leave Brooke alone. You have nothing else to say to her. Get out of Tree Hill. Follow your own goddamn dream and leave us the fuck alone." Peyton couldn't believe Jullian and his horrible timing. She wanted to punch him but decided against it considering her pregnant belly. He sat at the bar at Tric, nursing a bottle of vodka. He listened to her yell and said nothing, showed no emotion. "You disgust me." She spit the words like they were venom and turned on her heels, leaving him to think about the day's events.

**Chapter 5:**

Haley felt it was best to spend the night not knowing whether or not Brooke was actually okay considering the events of the day. Lying in the bed next to her best friend, she thought about how Brooke's life had changed with the addition of Sam and the ways in which it had helped the sardonic teenager. She was jolted from her thoughts by the sound of Sam screaming in the other room. Haley ran to Sam's room with Brooke on her tail. There was a repeat of the night before—Sam crying into her knees, rocking back and forth.

"Brooke, try and go back to sleep. I'll take care of Sam," Haley told Brooke as they both stood in the doorway. Brooke was a little uncertain about leaving her daughter but she figured that she would just be down the hall if she were actually needed. Plus Haley had a good relationship with Sam. She thought maybe Sam would open up to Haley about whatever was bothering her in her sleep.

"Hun, Sam, are you okay? What's wrong? Want to talk?" Haley asked, trying in vain to soothe the sobbing teenager.

"It's just a bad dream. Sorry I woke you both up. I'm fine." Sam stubbornly refused to accept Haley's comforting actions, but she flinched as Haley went to hug her anyway.

"Did you just flinch?" Silence. "Sam, are you okay?" Silence. "Samantha. Are you hurt?" Silence. "Do I need to go get Brooke?"

"No. No. No. She can't handle anything else today. I can handle it. It's not a big deal."

"Sam, what's happening? I don't understand."

"I just got in a fight. I'm a little sore. It's no big deal."

"With who? That flinch didn't seem like nothing. Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes. I'm fine. Just leave it alone. I don't want to get anyone in trouble."

"You won't. I just want to make sure you're safe, and Brooke does too. She would do anything for you. Who'd you get in a fight with, Sam?"

Sam looked down solemnly at the comforter, wishing she hadn't screamed in the first place. She couldn't think of any way to stop this conversation from going any further. She muttered a name under her breath, hoping it would satisfy Haley's need for an answer. Haley, however, understood the shaky name, and rage flashed across her face.

"You got in a fight? You sure about that? Because I doubt you would beat up a 32 year old man? When? How? Why? Where?"

Sam was touched by Haley's concern but said, "I really don't want to talk anymore Haley. Thanks for comforting me. Good night."

"Oh no. It is not over like that. Whatever he did to you is not okay. Please talk to me. Tell me what he did. If you want we can leave Brooke out of it for now, but she is really worried about you, just like I am. We want to keep you safe."

Sam resigned herself to telling the story she'd been running from. She described the aspects of her "fight" with Jullian and how she knew he had talked to her mother. She had seen the two of them talking in the café. She also explained the one-sided, phone conversation she'd heard between who she presumed to be Victoria and Jullian. She talked about confronting Jullian about not wanting to be returned to her birth mother, that Brooke was her mother that she didn't want to leave the family she had made. When Sam got to the part about him hitting her, Haley wanted to cry but stayed strong for Sam. She couldn't believe Jullian did everything Sam was saying. Everyone had accepted him and let them into their lives. Sam slowly pulled her shirt up and revealed a series of purple bruises.

"Don't worry Haley. They aren't that bad. I've had worse. Foster homes typically aren't easy on the body."

"Sam. Sweetie. That's not the point. The point is that you should feel safe where you are. No one should use you as a punching bag. I can't believe you dealt with this on your own for so long. I really think you should tell Brooke."

"Tell me what?" Brooke was standing at the door wrapped in her robe looking at the sight of her best friend and daughter talking. She wanted to make sure Sam was okay and walked in at the end of Haley's sentence. Haley seemed worried, which added stress to Brooke's emotions. There was a heavy silence in the room. Haley looked from Brooke to Sam, and Sam found comfort in staring at her comforter. Brooke repeated herself. "Tell me what? What's happening?"

"Sam, you need to tell her. I realize this wasn't the circumstance you were planning on, if you were at all, but you need to talk to her. She cares about you so much and would do anything for you."

"That part is what I'm worried about, but I guess it's now or never."

Again, Sam described her story in the same way she'd told Haley 10 minutes earlier. Brooke couldn't quell her emotions. She couldn't even decide what it was she feeling. It was a mix of anger, disbelief, sadness, and hate. She wanted to kill Jullian for what he did, but she couldn't walk out and leave her daughter again. Brooke sat on the bed next to Haley and Sam and held Sam tightly against her, whispering her apologies for bringing him into the house and that Sam was safe now.

Sam felt relieved that Brooke didn't speed off to find Jullian. She knew it was coming though—the point when she would have to leave the safety of her mother's embrace.

**Chapter 6: **

Brooke was livid as she stormed into Tric. There he was, sitting at the bar looking ragged and worn out. He turned to look at her and stood up starting to speak, "Brooke, look. I'm so…"

:slap:

"Shut the fuck up. I don't want to hear what you have to say. You don't understand the pain you have caused my family." She was screaming now, and her hand stung with the impact it had on his cheek. By now, Peyton was standing at the door of her office.

"Do you know what you have done? Do you? You made my daughter fearful in her own goddamn home. How could you turn my beautifully sarcastic and strong daughter into a scared, hidden teenager? Oh! You turned her into your own personal punching bag. There are no words to describe how much I hate you. It's not just about me and how you destroyed the trust I had for you in under two sentences or that you asked me to leave the country without my daughter. It's that you turned this home into something similar to her other foster homes. She ran from them, and if she runs from me because of what you did to her, I swear I will come after you. Do you understand? I fucking hate you. You have ruined everything good I had with my daughter in the span of 4 days. It took me forever to build that relationship and I would give anything to protect it from bastards like you. If you come near my daughter again, you will seriously regret it. I don't care what it takes to protect her and I thought you would have learned this by now. I want you to pack up and leave and never come back. It's for your own good. Now get the fuck out of my life."

"But Brooke, I love you. I was doing it for you."

"Oh really? Explain that one to me. How was taking my daughter away from me helping me? She's one of the only people in this world I would give my life for. You were being a selfish dick trying to take her away from me. You knew I would always choose her over you, always. And that drove you crazy. You couldn't handle the fact that you weren't number one in my playbook. I really don't think you understand. I hate you. You have managed to turn my life upside down in less than 24 hour. You beat my daughter! You better thank Haley because I nearly brought my gun down here. You know how insecure I felt after my attack and I trusted you and talked to you about it. Then you turn around and do the exact same thing to my 15-year-old daughter. How fucking dare you?"

"Brooke…"

:slap:

"Jullian, I think it's time for you to leave. You can show yourself out or we can call the cops. I'm sure they'd love to arrest you for abusing Sam. You choose. Leave Tree Hill now or get arrested and never leave." Peyton was now standing between Brooke and Jullian, worried about what might transpire if the argument got any further.

Jullian stalked out of the building into the early morning.

"Good choice douche bag." Brooke muttered, leaning against the bar for support. It seemed like this one going to be another horrible day. Without warning, her tears started to fall for her daughter, for herself, for Sam's birth mother, for Victoria, for Jullian, for Tree Hill.


End file.
